The cafeteria at the Upper Campus is always filled with noise from students and teachers enjoying the delicious food cooked by the kitchen staff.
Looking around and watching people enjoy his food, Moises Ferrel is filled with joy.
“When you are cooking and people like your food and you see happy faces, it makes me happy too,” Mr. Ferrel said.
Mr. Ferrel has been working as an OVS kitchen staff member for 20 years and he enjoys every moment of it. He originally got the job when one of his friends told him about a position that had opened up in the Upper Campus kitchen.
His favorite meals to cook and serve are Mexican and Italian food, and the food that is served is delicious.
Sophomore Genesis Langdell knows Mr. Ferrel through attending OVS.
Her favorite meal that he makes and serves are the burritos because she loves how passionate he is about cooking them, as well as cooking in general. On a daily basis, Genesis loves to speak Spanish while she chats with Mr. Ferrel;.
“I feel like it is polite to speak Spanish to the chefs because that was the way I was taught,” she explained.
Teacher Carmen Doane-Barkan has known Mr. Ferrel since 2017, which is when she first started teaching at OVS.
“Breakfast, just all the breakfast,” she says when asked about her favorite meal. “He puts such care into breakfast.”
Although Mrs. Doane-Barkan has not spent any time with Moises outside of school, she knows that he is a kind and passionate person who puts great care into everything he does.
“He cooks for us as though we were family,” she said.
Outside of OVS, Mr. Ferrel is a family man. He especially enjoys spending time with his daughters. He also does ceramics and participated in the OVS adult ceramics class taught by Jody Cooper.
“I have been working here for a long time, and I really enjoy working here,” Mr. Ferrel said. “I like how everyone is — the teachers, all the kids — and how they say thank you. It makes me happy.”